Advertisers conventionally purchase advertising inventory (e.g., advertisement spots) from advertising publishers (e.g., television stations, radio stations, and other providers of information over different types of media) according to procedures that support pre-defined advertisement targeting. For example, advertisers may have a well defined target market that they are attempting to reach with their advertising message. Similarly, advertisers can perform very detailed analysis on the return that they can expect from a properly targeted advertisement. Advertisers can select advertising inventory in an effort to satisfy their targeting and revenue projection efforts.
Advertising publishers/owners of advertising inventory can place restrictions on their advertising inventory in an attempt to efficiently allocate the advertising to advertisers. For example, owners of advertising inventory can restrict the types of advertisements that can appear near other advertisements. Similarly, owners of advertising inventory can restrict the number of advertisements that are placed by a single advertiser.
Advertising inventory can be allocated to a limited number of advertisers during any given time period. Allocation can be performed, for example, in an attempt to balance the constraints imposed by advertisers and the restrictions placed on the advertising inventory by the owners of the inventory. However, inefficient allocation of the advertising inventory can affect the value of the advertising inventory to advertisers and, in turn, revenue received by the owners of the advertising inventory.